novelraw Chapter 139 139: Re-entering the Dream Realm - The Changing Future [2.1k]
Chapter 139 139: Re-entering the Dream Realm - The Changing Future [2.1k]
Translator: CinderTL
In the following days, Le Ping'an's disappearance became the hottest topic at Star City Academy.
Law enforcement officers stationed themselves at the academy to investigate the incident.
During the investigation, Feng Qi was also questioned by the authorities.
They asked about Le Ping'an's character, whether he had any enemies at the academy, and if he had exhibited any strange behavior or signs of mental distress.
Feng Qi answered all their questions truthfully.
After taking his statement, the officers showed no suspicion toward him, as he had no motive for murder.
Finally, after reviewing surveillance footage, the officers followed Le Ping'an's route through the academy's back mountain and discovered his shattered phone at the summit.
Forensic analysis revealed only Le Ping'an's fingerprints on the device.
A search of fresh footprints on the mountain yielded only Le Ping'an's tracks, suggesting he had mysteriously vanished after reaching the summit in the early hours of the morning.
The academy forum buzzed with endless speculation about Le Ping'an's disappearance.
Students let their imaginations run wild, concocting countless theories about what might have happened to him.
Xuanhuan Version: Le Ping'an was whisked away from the mountain peak by the Nine Dragons Coffin Pull.
Xianxia Version: Le Ping'an stumbled upon a hidden cave on the mountain peak, where he discovered a god-tier cultivation technique. Inside, time flowed differently—one day in the cave equaled a thousand years in the outside world. After a millennium, he emerged.
Sci-Fi Version: Le Ping'an accidentally activated a space-time node on the mountain peak, transporting him to the future or the distant past.
Fantasy Version: Le Ping'an entered a magical world with his cultivation technique, using it to dominate the native mages and ascend to the pinnacle of life.
Anime Version: Le Ping'an became a hero, summoned by the suffering people of another world to be their savior. His enemies were likely the World Destruction Great Demon King and evil dragons.
Supernatural Version: Le Ping'an's ghost still roams the mountain peak...
None of these speculations were credible, and there was no evidence to explain Le Ping'an's disappearance.
The investigation reached a dead end.
To avoid disrupting the students' studies, only one investigator remained, while the rest gradually withdrew from Star City Academy.
Le Ping'an's disappearance was essentially classified as a cold case. Without any clear leads, further investigation was impossible.
At the Academy Cafeteria, Feng Qi ate his lunch with a distracted air.
He felt a pang of guilt over Le Ping'an's death.
But his guilt was for his student, the Le Ping'an who had often discussed cultivation studies with him and taught him how to brew Clear Heart Wine, not the Le Ping'an who served the technology research institute.
Since Le Ping'an had stood against humanity, he was Feng Qi's mortal enemy, leaving no room for compromise.
Killing the werewolf had left him with a clear conscience.
"Brother Qi, are you thinking about Ping'an's disappearance?" Lin Ran asked, turning to look at him.
"No, I'm thinking about the future of humanity."
"What's there to think about? We won't even see humanity's future. All we can do is work hard to advance Human Civilization and create hope for the future," Lin Ran grinned.
"You're right," Feng Qi replied with a faint smile, then began eating heartily.
Lin Ran and Mu Qing were aware of Le Ping'an's disappearance, but they didn't dwell on it.
Their interactions with Le Ping'an had been minimal, and they felt no emotional connection to him—he was merely a classmate they'd passed by.
Instead, they were more concerned about Feng Qi's mood, constantly trying to comfort him.
After a few moments, Lin Ran finished his meal and turned to Feng Qi, asking:
"Brother Qi, have you thought about the freshman class Team Battle?"
He looked up at the question. "I've been studying team compositions lately. I'll make the arrangements once I figure it out."
"With Liu Yue alone, our class has a shot at the top three in the eastern region," Lin Ran said with a grin. "I think his strength is already at the core level of an A-tier domain combat team."
"Top three? I'm aiming for the championship."
"If Senior Sister and I could participate, the championship would be a sure thing. Too bad we're not freshmen anymore," Lin Ran said, shaking his head with a sigh.
"If Senior Sister's competing, does it even matter if you join? Are you just going to be dead weight? Or maybe fetch tea and water?"
Hearing them discuss her, Mu Qing quietly perked up her ears.
"Right?" Feng Qi asked, turning to her with a smile.
"Right," Mu Qing nodded vigorously in agreement, then continued to devour her meal.
"Senior Sister's strength is so well-hidden, and Liu Yue too. I thought I was strong enough, but it turns out there are hidden tigers and dragons all around... Brother Qi, are you hiding your strength too? Are you even stronger than Senior Sister?"
Lin Ran asked, scrutinizing him suspiciously from head to toe.
"I didn't expect you to discover my secret, even after hiding it so well."
"So, what's your actual strength?" Lin Ran's gossip-loving heart burned fiercely, and he immediately pressed for details.
"I could take on ten senior sisters like her," Feng Qi boasted. "Do you believe me?"
"Liar!" Lin Ran scoffed at Feng Qi's claim.
"I believe you," Mu Qing said earnestly, lifting her head and giving Feng Qi full credit.
After a leisurely lunch chat, Feng Qi returned to his dormitory.
Spreading out his notebook, he began reviewing the future plans he had recorded over the past few days.
This time, he had outlined two potential paths:
Path 1:
- Form a faction to confront the Technology Research Institute, potentially allying with the Scarlet Research Institute to probe their true strength from all angles.
- Risks: The Technology Research Institute's full capabilities remain unknown, making failure highly likely. However, success would bring about a world-shattering transformation.
- Note: Currently, I operate in the shadows while the Technology Research Institute remains in the open, giving me the initiative.
Path 2:
- Join the Dawn Army to uncover Mu Yao's secrets and learn the truth behind Mu Qing's city-razing actions.
- Risks: I might die prematurely during the Dawn Army's formation due to unforeseen circumstances, rendering this Future Line fruitless.
Feng Qi pondered deeply, torn between the two Future Lines.
After much deliberation at his desk, he finally made his decision: he would choose the first Future Line.
This path would allow him to uncover the inner workings of the technology research institute in greater detail. If successful, he might even be able to alter the future itself.
Just then, a knock sounded at his door.
Hearing the knock, he immediately rose and opened the door.
Two middle-aged men in Star City Academy security uniforms stood outside, sweat beading on their foreheads. They pointed to the three devices on the cart.
"Student Feng, are these the items you ordered online?"
"My apologies for the trouble," Feng Qi said, realizing his Alchemy Apparatus had arrived. He immediately thanked them.
With their assistance, the three devices were moved inside.
Before they left, Feng Qi offered the security guards two bottles of drinks, but they politely declined.
Closing the door, he began unpacking the devices.
The apparatus came fully assembled, eliminating the need for assembly.
Still, following the instructions, he meticulously cleaned each device inside and out.
Half a bottle of Clear Heart Wine remained from his previous batch, enough energy to enter the Dream Realm. But he was eager to try brewing his own.
He had learned all the necessary details from Le Ping'an.
But he had never put them into practice.
After connecting the three Alchemy Apparatus to power, he retrieved the spirit materials that had been delivered yesterday from the refrigerator.
He arranged the eight spirit materials on the desk, then calmed his mind and began to meticulously recall Le Ping'an's actions during the alchemy process.
The three apparatus were for measuring, refining, and fusing, respectively.
First, he measured the medicinal properties of each spirit material, then weighed them and trimmed off any excess.
Next, he fed the materials into the refining apparatus in sequence, extracting medicinal liquids of various colors.
Soon, the room filled with a rich medicinal fragrance.
The final step was fusing the medicinal liquids, the most critical part of the process. Success depended entirely on this step.
Throughout the fusion, he had to monitor the temperature, switching between high and low heat as needed, and adding stabilizing agents at specific moments to ensure the liquids blended properly.
Following Le Ping'an's instructions, he first poured the Blue Heart Grass liquid and Ice Crystal Fruit liquid into the fusion apparatus. After heating the mixture, he waited for the two spirit liquids to combine.
Under his expectant gaze, the pale blue and deep blue medicinal liquids began to slowly merge.
There was no sign of any rejection during the process.
After waiting about fifteen minutes, he added the third medicinal liquid.
This time, the fusion process changed slightly. Dense bubbles continuously surfaced on the liquid's surface, as if a violent reaction was occurring within.
Next came the fourth medicinal liquid, the fifth medicinal liquid...
The earlier fusions proceeded smoothly according to the steps, without any errors. But when he poured the final medicinal liquid into the fusion device, the already purple liquid suddenly began to violently fluctuate, causing the device to tremble.
Realizing a severe rejection reaction was occurring, he immediately poured in the white harmonizing agent.
In his haste, he added too much of the agent. The medicinal liquid, which had been nearly boiling during the fusion process, suddenly stilled.
The finished Clear Heart Wine should have been pale blue, but the liquid had frozen in its purple state.
Feng Qi: ...
Realizing his first attempt had failed, he felt a pang of regret. He had been confident that following the steps precisely would guarantee success, never imagining he would fail at the final stage.
He cursed his shaky hand for pouring in too much harmonizing agent.
The farmer uncle dug you out of the ground with a joyful expression, cradling you in his hands and praising, "What a fine vegetable! Truly a fine vegetable!"
The Narrator's mocking commentary appeared at that moment.
Realizing he had just lost over a million yuan, he felt a sharp pain in his liver, a dull ache in his stomach... his entire body ached.
His original savings of 5.6 million yuan had dwindled to just over 3.9 million after spending 1.25 million on Clear Heart Wine ingredients and 450,000 on alchemy apparatus.
The thought of the additional expenses when Fang Zhiyou arrived only deepened his distress.
Each batch of Clear Heart Wine he brewed saved him approximately 350,000 yuan—equivalent to three and a half times the cost of buying it outright.
Fortunately, he believed he had mastered the brewing process. As long as his hand didn't tremble during the final step, future batches should be problem-free.
He would recover this money eventually.
Despite his gloomy mood, his gaze drifted to the half-empty bottle of Clear Heart Wine resting beneath his desk.
The energy progress bar currently stood at 63%. Half a bottle of Clear Heart Wine was enough to enter the Dream Realm.
He bent down, picked up the bottle, pulled the cork, and drained it in one gulp.
As a burning sensation spread through his body, the energy progress bar began to fluctuate.
Waiting, he watched as the bar finally settled at 149.9%.
Seizing the moment while still drunk, he immediately lay down on the bed, preparing to enter the Dream Realm.
In this Future Line, his future self would inevitably engage in fierce conflicts with the technology research institute, and many events that would alter the future were bound to occur.
He imagined that the history of this timeline—his comrades and him clashing fiercely with their enemies—would be filled with passion and brilliance.
Though he couldn't personally experience it, he could still learn fragments of it through historical records.
Don't be so certain. It could just as easily be a tragic life cut short in youth.
Ignoring the Narrator's mocking remark, he lay on the bed, clutching the blanket, and closed his eyes.
Time flowed slowly. As his mind emptied, his expression gradually softened into one of serene tranquility...
The moment Feng Qi opened his eyes, he was stunned by the sight before him.
In this iteration of the Future Dream Realm, the sky was not entirely dominated by the Blood Moon.
To the west, the Blood Moon hung high in the sky, while to the east, the blazing sun blazed overhead.
The entire world seemed divided into two distinct halves, sharply demarcated, and he stood at the center of this division.
Has the future truly been altered?
(End of the Chapter)
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